Tim Paine – 2001 Junior Taverner
2001 Junior Taverner award winner, Tim Paine, has taken another step towards Test honours with his selection in the Australian squad playing 20/20 and ODI’s in England.
And quickly made his mark with a century and 50 in an Australian side that is charting its own course after the Ashes series. Now 24, Tim is building on his early promise with 1,611 first-class runs @ 30 that includes one century (215), 12 fifties, taking 85 catches and two stumpings. Thirty eight one-dayers have yielded 1,078 runs @33 with two centuries, 4 fifties, 35 catches and 6 stumpings. He has also played one international ODI and 20/20 – with many more to come.
After debuting in the 2005-06 season, Tim was a member of the Tasmanian Pura Cup winning team in 2006-07.
At the Tavern
Tasmanian Lord’s Taverner Ray Westwood is the envy of fellow members as he stands proudly outside the Tavern at Lord’s. He then disappeared for a couple of frosties.
FROM SEA TO SUMMIT
Twin Tests of Endurance of Papua New Guinea
Tassie Lord’s Taverner Chris Guesdon has been in training for eighteen months, turning trekker in an attempt to conquer the twin tests of endurance of Papua New Guinea, of sea and summit. A former marathon swimmer, on 21st November 1971, a young Chris was one of three expats who participated in the once-only Fisherman Island swim in the seas off Port Moresby. There were many obstacles to overcome during the 12 kilometre swim, from the hot and humid temperatures both in and out of the water, uncharted reefs and coral, and the predatory inhabitants of those tropical waters. With sharks and crocs on their minds, it was sea snakes that unexpectedly joined the swimmers during the event.
Before the swim that year Chris became a first time father to Danielle, born in Port Moresby in July. Then Chris and wife Sue carried their "lik-lik meri" (little girl) around in a finely woven buka basket made by the Buka people of Bougainville.
In 2009 a not-so-young Chris returned to PNG with a grown-up Danielle. This time a different kind of endurance effort was on his mind. Chris and Danielle returned to PNG to trek the 155 kilometre war time Kokoda Track. The track will see both the anniversary of Chris' epic swim and Danielle's birthday.
By walking Kokoda Chris is achieving a long-held dream which began all those years ago when he and Sue would walk from the elevated village of Sogeri to the start of the track and together wonder about whether to take it on. Not in a position to do so then due to commitments with his young daughter, Chris will now be able to begin the walk with that daughter at his side.
When Chris asked Danielle 12 months ago if she would trek the Kokoda Trail with him there was no hesitation. Danielle has many adventurous travels under her belt, hiking through jungles and up volcanos, riding camels in the desert and crossing continents by train, through much of Asia, the Middle East and the subcontinent.
The Kokoda Trail follows in the footsteps of Australian soldiers. They will test body and spirit climbing the majestic and challenging Owen Stanley ranges, dealing with tropical rain, mud, heat, hazardous river crossings and unrelenting mountain passes. More importantly, they will follow the original 155km wartime track through battlefields, fire support bases, casualty evacuation stations and air supply areas, and learn of this important event in Australia's military history.
The villagers along the track are living in a subsistence economy and are among the most isolated people in the world. Australians owe them and their forebears so much for their spirit and alliance to the Australian soldiers. People who make the Kokoda Trek generally raise funds for their home based charitable causes but we believe that as we are in their country and we Australians owe so much to the locals that any funds raised or donations should be directed toward the villagers along the trail or at least the people of Papua New Guinea.
Chris has been training this last year by walking the hills around Hobart, hikes up Mount Wellington and through the cold and rugged Tasmanian wilderness areas of Mt Field and Cockle Creek. Hampered by a lack of hills around Melbourne, Danielle has been walking the Kokoda Memorial Steps in the Dandenongs and surrounds.
PostScript: Success
Danielle and Chris Guesdon successfully completed the ten day 155 km wartime track from Owers Corner to Kokoda in Papua New Guinea, returning to Port Moresby at the end of July. Their group returned relatively unscathed apart from some scratches and sore muscles, although Chris had been hampered by the onset of a severe cold. They passed other groups on the track who were not so lucky, some trekkers having suffered injuries and illness.
Chris modelled his 18-month training and effort on the track on his marathon swimming experience (and somewhat also on the fable of the tortoise and the hare). Although he commented that despite this nothing really prepared him for the gruelling reality of the track, there was never a moment he contemplated not finishing.
At the conclusion of the trek Chris and Danielle stayed an extra couple of days in Port Moresby, the place of Danielle's birth. Chris was interested to see that the dusty town of 38 years ago had become a burgeoning city. Expressions of the new PNG were portrayed in an exhibition of modern art at Parliament House.
Relay For Life.
The Tasmanian Branch of the Taverners this year entered a team in the Cancer Council’s annual “Relay For Life” in Hobart. This event attracts some 2000 participants in nearly 100 teams, both corporate and private, to raise funds for the activities of the Council in Tasmania.
The event is a 22 hour, non-stop walk around the Domain Athletics Track over a weekend in February, an event this year that raised nearly $285,000 in donations and sponsorships. The Domain Athletics centre becomes a veritable ten-city as teams enjoy an overnight stay at the venue in a spirit of fun and camaraderie. Team members take turns to walk for an hour, several giving more than one hour to the event.
Team member Trish Webb (right), who between herself and family members contributed some six hours of walking, starting her one-hour walk.